Be Careful What You Wish For 0x
by blissful DREAMER 0x
Summary: Another story featuring Dean, Sam, and Taylor. This one has a XMas theme since XMas is coming! Dean makes a wish that changes the lives of Sam, Taylor and others. Will Sam find a way to reverse the wish or does he like things the way they are?
1. An Accidental Wish

"Remind me why we're here again?" Dean asked as he looked up at the local mall he, Sam, and Taylor were standing in front of.

"Because the mall's always filled with Christmas stuff, and since you two aren't exactly the most festive guys on the planet, I want to look around, and get into the spirit," Taylor told them with a grin, and began walking in the direction of the front entrance to the mall. Dean looked over at Sam who shrugged at him before taking off after Taylor. Dean sighed before doing the same, not seeing what other option he had.

Dean stepped inside the mall, immediately smelling the scent of pine air freshener, and hearing the talking and laughter as people bustled around him shopping for last minute Christmas gifts. Today was Christmas Eve, and Dean realized that this would probably be a different kind of Christmas with Taylor around. He knew she was really into the holidays, even though her memories were probably just as pathetic as Dean's were. Taylor's parents were hunters, and Taylor had been constantly alone during her childhood. Dean found himself thankful that he at least got to go with his dad on some hunts. Taylor's parents didn't want to risk it, and never took Taylor.

He realized now that that was probably a mistake considering that Taylor wasn't a bad hunter. She had killed a shapeshifter on their last hunt, knew how to work just about every weapon, and probably more that Dean just didn't know about. He looked over at her with admiration as she looked around the mall with a huge smile on her face. Dean looked over and saw Sam staring at her, too, and stopped himself from whacking him on the arm to stop staring at Taylor.

"Let's go walk down the mall," Taylor suggested, starting to walk. "I think there's a Christmas store here somewhere." Dean and Sam followed behind her.

Even though Dean didn't have such good memories for Christmas, he still missed a lot of things about it. Mainly his dad. It hadn't even been a year since his dad had died to save him, and not a day went by where he hadn't wished he hadn't done that for him. Dean didn't know why he deserved to live and for his dad to die. John was a much better hunter, and Dean understood that he was just trying to protect his son, but dying for him wasn't the thing that Dean had expected.

Holidays were about being with family, right? Well now Dean's only family was Sam, and Dean just wished that for once his family could be together again. He knew it wasn't possible since his parents were dead, and tried to be thankful for what he still had. Now he had Taylor, which was a lot less lonely. But Dean couldn't help but envy her a little. Yes, she hadn't had any brothers or sisters, but that meant that she didn't need to watch out for anyone, and she still had both of her parents living. Dean wondered if Taylor really wanted to spend the holidays with them, but guessed that they were probably hunting and didn't have time to celebrate Christmas.

Suddenly Dean realized he'd been walking for around 5 minutes, and they were nearing the Christmas store. Taylor immediately fast-walked to the entrance, and Sam gave a small laugh before following her. Dean was about to go into the store when something caught his attention.

Standing at the front of the store was a man dressed in a Santa Claus outfit. Except his face and visible skin was covered in strange tattoos, he wasn't wearing a white beard, and his eyes were piercing blue. Dean would have kept walking, but this guy just seemed strange, and Dean just couldn't put his finger on why. A few pretty girls in Santa's Helpers costumes stood a few feet away from where Santa sat talking and laughing as if he wasn't there. Dean wondered if he was just imagining this whole thing, but then Santa talked.

"Come here boy," the man told Dean in a commanding voice, gesturing for Dean to come closer. Dean was hesitant at first, but then decided, what the hell? He walked over to the man, and kept his eyes on the man's piercing blue ones.

"Now, what do you want for Christmas?" The man asked him with a mischievous smile. Dean gave him a weird look, not sure why this guy was asking Dean who was much older than the other little kids that he should probably be asking this to. But kids walked by, holding their parents hands, not even looking in Santa's direction.

Dean thought better than to answer, and the man gave a small laugh, knowing Dean wasn't going to respond. "Don't worry kid, I already know," the man told him with another mischievous smile. As Dean gave him a weird look, the man stood up quickly and placed his hand on the top of Dean's head and Dean felt an electric shock course through his brain. He groaned aloud in agony and he felt like he was losing consciousness, but within seconds the man removed his hand as Dean collapsed to the ground on his knees.

For a few seconds Dean didn't know where he was at all. He looked around nervously, getting back to his feet. Remembering what had just happened he looked over at where Santa had been sitting, but his eyes widened when he saw no chair or remnants of the man ever being there. Dean wondered if he'd just imagined the whole thing, but knew he hadn't. He felt the sting that the small electric shock had caused, and knew he'd just had a confrontation with the man. Santa's Helpers stood by where the chair had been before, still talking and laughing as if nothing had just happened.

Dean looked around wondering if anyone had witnessed what he had, but no one seemed to be staring at him or giving him weird looks. Everyone just bustled by, trying to finish up their shopping. Dean shook his head, trying not to think about it, and went inside the store to find Taylor and Sam.

He walked through the groups of people inside the small store, trying to look for Sam and Taylor's familiar brunette heads. He was getting hopeless, seeing way too many brunette heads when he heard Taylor's familiar laugh. Dean looked around and then spotted with relief Taylor and Sam laughing, looking through a photo album of the Christmas store staff throughout the years. He walked over to them and tapped Sam on the shoulder making him swing around curiously.

"Hey, there you are," Sam said with a relieved grin.

"Where were you?" Taylor asked with interest, staring at him with her intense green eyes.

"This guy . . ." Dean started, but then stopped himself, not up to explaining what had just happened since he really didn't know himself. Sam and Taylor shot him confused stares, but Dean just shook his head. "Never mind." Sam and Taylor shrugged, and turned back to the photo album as Dean tried to figure out what had just happened to him.

Sam woke up the next morning, stretching his long arms over his head. He sat up and rubbed his tired, closed eyes a few times before opening them. His eyes widened at what he saw, and he shot confused stares around the room.

He was sitting in a king-sized bed, not the twin mattress that he'd been sleeping on the night before at the hotel he, Dean, and Taylor had been staying at. He looked around the room he was in, which was definitely not the hotel room he'd fell asleep in. The room was a lot bigger, the walls were painted a peaceful green color, the carpet was light beige, and there was a large bureau with a mirror right across from him.

Sam stared at his reflection, glad to see that he still looked the same. Except he'd been wearing an army green colored t-shirt the night before, but now his chest was exposed. He realized he was wearing a pair of black and gray plaid pajama pants on underneath the covers he'd been sleeping under. He noticed the other side of the bed he was sitting had the sheets pulled across like someone had been sleeping there, and had gotten out of bed. Sam curiously got out of bed, picked up a gray t-shirt off of the carpet that he didn't recognize, and pulled it over his head. He curiously walked out of the room, and out into an unfamiliar hallway.

There were only a few doors in the short hallway, but Sam knew he was in a normal sized house, not the hotel room he'd been in last night. Sam had no clue what was going on, and he wondered if this was some sort of joke. But he knew Dean would never go this far, and be able to convince someone to let them use their house. Sam started to walk cautiously towards the spiral stairs at the end of the hallway when something on the wall caught his eye.

Sam's eyes widened as he stared at a framed picture on the wall. It was a picture of him, and one of his professors at Stanford. They were both grinning, and Sam had an arm around the man's shoulder since he was taller than the professor and he couldn't have reached Sam's shoulders if he tried. The picture looked recent, and Sam knew he was right when he took the picture off of the wall and looked on the back. He read the date aloud that was written in black ink on the back of the framed photo: "2007." Sam was now getting totally freaked out. He hadn't been at Stanford for at least a year or more, and this photo was from _this year?_ He put the photo quickly back on the wall with shaking hands.

Sam tore off down the hallway, now exasperated, confused, and a little frightened. He'd had enough, and needed to know what was going on. He ran down the spiral staircase, and noticed the house was nicer than he'd thought. There was a gorgeous chandelier hanging above the foyer, and the floor was all glossy hardwood. He walked cautiously through the foyer, and into a room, which he guessed to be the kitchen. Light shone throughout the room, and Sam looked around, confused, wondering where the heck he was, when he froze, hearing a familiar voice.

"Well, look who decided to wake up," the voice said with a familiar laugh, and Sam wondered for a moment if he was dreaming. He turned to where the voice had come from, and felt his entire body tense up as tears came to his eyes after hearing that familiar voice.

"Dad?"


	2. Confusion

Sam stared in disbelief and shock at the man he hadn't seen in so long. John Winchester sat with a smile on his face in a chair at a small round table in the kitchen. He looked comfortable, healthy, and definitely alive. Sam almost pinched himself to see if he was dreaming all of this, but he knew he was awake and this was definitely real. He just couldn't believe what was happening.

"Oh good Sam you're awake," another familiar voice said as she walked into the room. Sam grinned with relief seeing that he at least wasn't alone. Taylor walked in into the room with a smile, wearing a berry colored terry cloth Victoria's Secret robe that showed off her slender, tanned legs. She looked pretty much the same except prettier and cleaner. She hadn't gotten to shower as much as normal when they were on hunts going from one hotel to the next. Her long, dark brown hair was glossy and curled at the ends. She wore no makeup, but still looked gorgeous. Sam just continued to stare.

"Why are you looking at me like that, Sam?" Taylor asked, looking over at him with a smile and a laugh. Sam realized how he must look, and cleared his throat and tried to look casual.

"John just came over for some breakfast," Taylor pointed out, gesturing to John sitting at the table. Sam looked over at him, remembering he was there.

"Where's Dean?" Sam asked, and John's face immediately darkened, and he looked away, tears coming to his eyes that he refused to let anyone see. Taylor turned to look at John with a sympathetic look, and a look at Sam silently asking why he would say that. Sam stared at them, confused, but expecting the worse.

"You know your brother died around a year ago, Sammy," John reminded him, refusing to make eye contact and Sam's jaw dropped in shock.

"What are you talking about!?" Sam exclaimed in shock, not believing what he was hearing. "He came out of that coma after you . . ." Sam stopped mid-sentence, receiving confused looks from John and Taylor. Suddenly it all made sense. Dean never made it out of the coma. He died, and that was why John was here. But that meant that he hadn't sold his soul. Sam grew confused again.

"It's too bad I never got to meet him," Taylor added with a sad shake of her head, her curls bouncing. Sam looked over at her realizing that Dean would have to have died months before he'd met Taylor. _So that means they never met, _Sam realized.

"Taylor, how did we meet?" Sam asked suddenly, receiving a startled look from Taylor at the sudden change in subject. She looked at John with confusion, but then decided to answer his question after seeing the pleading look in Sam's eyes.

"We met when you and your dad teamed up with my parents to save me from a demon," Taylor told him, and Sam nodded, realizing that he'd been right.

That had been the hunt when Sam and Dean had met Taylor after John had died. _Since Dean died that must mean that me and John must have only met Taylor, _Sam realized, starting to understand. But Sam still didn't get one thing. The night before things had been normal and now it was as if he was in an alter-universe where John was alive and Dean was dead. Sam mumbled something about needing some air, and fled from the room. He fast-walked to the front door of the house, swung it open, and stepped out into the crisp, autumn air.

Sam looked around and saw that this house was surrounded with houses of different, but similar designs. He guessed he was in a specific neighborhood right now, but had no clue which town or state he was in. He took a seat on a gray cement step outside the front door after he had closed it behind him. So many things were running through his mind that he still couldn't believe all this was happening.

Dean was dead. His father was alive. He was at a house with Taylor. Just last night he had come from the mall with Taylor and Dean and gone to bed late after they'd hung out at a local bar having a great time for a few hours. Life wasn't the same knowing your brother wasn't there to share it with you. It had come as a shock to him, but John and Taylor already seemed to know he had died. Why was it that he was so confused, and everyone else seemed calm and serene?

He heard the front door open slowly behind him, and he turned to see who it was. Taylor cautiously walked outside, shutting the door behind her and took a seat beside Sam. They sat for awhile in silence before Taylor cleared her throat and spoke up.

"Are you okay?" Taylor asked, sounding concerned. She looked over at Sam, but he just looked out across the street still in thought.

"Sorry, I'm just a little out of it," Sam admitted. "I guess I just needed some time to think." Taylor nodded, understanding and looked out across the street as well.

"Do you mind your dad being here?" Taylor asked him, and finally he turned to look at her with a confused expression.

"Why would I mind my dad being here?" He asked her curiously. She looked away, and nervously looked at her nails. He could tell she wasn't telling him something and he wanted to know what.

"Well, it's been a little uncomfortable between you since Dean died," Taylor informed him, and he looked away understanding. "Well, at least that's what you told me." Sam decided not to make her confused so he nodded, acting as if he knew he'd told her this.

"I didn't invite him," Taylor told him. "He just showed up, and asked if I minded him coming over for a little while. I said it was fine, and I didn't want to wake you up to ask you." Sam nodded, grateful, because that would have made him twice as confused as he had been before.

"And why did I say it was uncomfortable between me and my dad since Dean died?" Sam asked, trying to act as if he'd just forgotten and needed to be reminded.

"Well, you told me that he just seemed lost, like he didn't know how to save Dean. You knew he could have done something, and you're mad that he didn't. That's what you told me," Taylor told him, and Sam nodded slowly as if remembering now.

"Well, it's really not that awkward anymore so I think I'm going to go inside now," Sam said, standing up to go back inside. Taylor stood up as well.

"You sure you're going to be okay?" Taylor asked, looking up into Sam's eyes with concern. He smiled down at her.

"I'll be fine," he reassured her. Before he could turn to go inside though Taylor pressed her lips against his, startling him. His eyes were open for a few seconds before he realized what was going on, and shut them. He hadn't felt this way kissing a girl for a while and he admitted it felt good. He continued kissing her, enjoying the moment, but then felt a surge of guilt.

Taylor had been Dean's girlfriend just last night. In this reality she'd never met him, and obviously she was with Sam, but it still felt wrong. But when he really thought about it he realized that if Dean hadn't been around to take the spotlight off of Sam then he probably would have ended up with Taylor. He always thought there could have been something there. Now was that really something to feel guilty about? He continued kissing her when he heard the door open, and they pulled away from each other quickly.

"Whoa, sorry," John apologized, looking embarrassed. "Didn't mean to interrupt." John shot a proud smile towards Sam who looked away awkwardly.

"I'll go get breakfast ready," Taylor told them, blushing still from what John had just witnessed. She gave a small smile back at Sam before walking around John back into the house.

"Well, are you going to stand outside all day or come back inside?" John asked with a grin. "You know I'm only here for a few days since I'm doing a local job." Sam wondered if in this reality John still hunted and just needed to ask.

"What kind of job?" Sam asked with genuine interest. John gave him a look that silently asked if he was serious, but Sam just continued to stare at him, anxious for his answer, so John sighed.

"There have been vampire sightings in a town not far from here. I'm going to check it out later tonight, but I still haven't figured what all the deaths have in common," John admitted, running a hand through his short hair.

"Well, why don't you ask Ash to look into it for you?" Sam suggested, receiving a confused look from John.

"Who's Ash?" John asked, sounding totally confused. Sam stared at his father, trying to figure out if John was joking, but then it came to him. He and Dean had met Ash, Jo, and Ellen shortly after John had died. _So if Dean died instead of Dad that means that I never went to the Roadhouse because we never heard Ellen's message on Dad's phone, _Sam realized. John was still staring at his son in confusion, and Sam realized he had to think fast.

"Oh, no one," Sam lied. "He's just this guy from Stanford that can find anything on his laptop." John nodded, and Sam smiled awkwardly before leading the way back inside the house.


End file.
